3 worn out keris

apolaki · 7th February 2020, 11:53 PM

Hi all!

The vinegar solution is doing wonders to the keris! Thank you so much. The rust is almost completely gone.

I wanted to know after I have finished its last bath and applied baking soda slurry to remove the remnants of vinegar, what is the next step? Essentially, I wanted to know:

1) Is the process of etching different, what are some solvents readily available to common consumer?

2) If I choose not to etch it, should I just rub it well with oil, and if so what type of oil is recommended WD40?

This process of cleaning has been fun so far.

Thanks again!

Rick · 8th February 2020, 01:12 AM

Apolaki, I'd suggest that if you haven't put the bugis dressed blade in your de-rusting solution already that you don't.
I think that blade doesn't require such a radical treatment; doing so might remove all the staining that is on there now, and that blade is in fairly decent condition compared to the other two.

jagabuwana · 8th February 2020, 01:46 PM

Staining the blade is a more difficult proposition. In Jawa they would use warangan, basically arsenic. Some people on this forum have been lucky to get access to the lab grade stuff. For the rest of us, realgar is a mineral you can get online which has arsenic content, but the results seem inconsistent.

I have used sulfur and rice water once and it looked like itcould have been promising had I just let it go on for longer.

A keyword search will serve you well, as these have been discussed at length in many threads.

apolaki · 9th February 2020, 04:25 PM

Thanks for the advice. I won't tinker with the keris in Madura dress until I gain more experience.

I did notice while doing repeated cleaning and bathing of the rusted keris that there is some yellow discoloration appearing in areas of the blade. Is this something to be concerned about? I vaguely recall something being mentioned about that in past forum posts but I dont remember what was stated.

7th February 2020, 11:53 PM	#1
apolaki Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 160	Hi all! The vinegar solution is doing wonders to the keris! Thank you so much. The rust is almost completely gone. I wanted to know after I have finished its last bath and applied baking soda slurry to remove the remnants of vinegar, what is the next step? Essentially, I wanted to know: 1) Is the process of etching different, what are some solvents readily available to common consumer? 2) If I choose not to etch it, should I just rub it well with oil, and if so what type of oil is recommended WD40? This process of cleaning has been fun so far. Thanks again!

8th February 2020, 01:12 AM	#2
Rick Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 6,376	Apolaki, I'd suggest that if you haven't put the bugis dressed blade in your de-rusting solution already that you don't. I think that blade doesn't require such a radical treatment; doing so might remove all the staining that is on there now, and that blade is in fairly decent condition compared to the other two.

8th February 2020, 01:46 PM	#3
jagabuwana Member Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 292	Staining the blade is a more difficult proposition. In Jawa they would use warangan, basically arsenic. Some people on this forum have been lucky to get access to the lab grade stuff. For the rest of us, realgar is a mineral you can get online which has arsenic content, but the results seem inconsistent. I have used sulfur and rice water once and it looked like itcould have been promising had I just let it go on for longer. A keyword search will serve you well, as these have been discussed at length in many threads.

9th February 2020, 04:25 PM	#4
apolaki Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 160	Thanks for the advice. I won't tinker with the keris in Madura dress until I gain more experience. I did notice while doing repeated cleaning and bathing of the rusted keris that there is some yellow discoloration appearing in areas of the blade. Is this something to be concerned about? I vaguely recall something being mentioned about that in past forum posts but I dont remember what was stated.